Car coupler



June 29 ,1926. l 1,590,489 R. L.. BALLQU CAR COUPLER Filed April l 19252 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 29 ,1926. 1,590,489

R. L. BALLOU GAR GOUPLER Filed April 1,. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 :mm/IWA scars, orilnstancef, those A ent to `Albert Stacy, No. l jvhich' 'patentyvasdi'rected 10.,

`lVith lthe yforego Patented June 29, 1926.

UNTED STATES PATENT orifice.;

Renner LBLiioU; or`anziani),fgiiniiriicnr,' :Assieiion or ONE-'riempieALBERT sTAoY, or LOTHAIR, KENTUCKY, A iin HAZARD, KEiITUQIY- .vApplication filed April 1, 1925. Serial No. 19,967.

This application relates primarily to car couple-rs ot thetypeiiitendeidttor frise on Y comparatively small ininecars,ora/similar, y y Y pulled *by`V donkey vengines for hauling ldir u.;

, l(Line object of the invention isto improve tion resides in the'novel' sub] `iligure l is'a top jpllau-vieyv :iv-ith-parts' removed andin section, shoiviigboth units (C and S). of the improved coupleiinoperi" ative relation with each other* Y f" Figure. 2 is a Icentralvertical"lon i'it'udi-4 nal section as indicated :by iline 9de-2 ot rig.i'.

` f Figure 25 isl afdetail'vertical :transverse section through' thehead only of the couf' pler unit S as indicated by the lines 3-3 ot FQS-l and 2.' Figureli 's a' yerticaltransverse sectional view through theiclutch unit C or' thecoui plei', illustrating also an end elevation o'tthecar towhich'it i'sappflied. 'K I Figures 5 and 6are,'verticahtraiisverse sectional views as indicated by lines 5-5- vand6-6 oiFig. 1f

Figure pler.

'i Y' Figure 8 is a longitudinal section' on line 8--8 of Fig. 7. Figure9 is aplan View of one ofthe blocks which guideth'ey movable jaws4 otthe y clutch unit VC.7 l

Figures 10l aiid'11 'laren'vertical sectional views as indicated bylines 101O and 114-11 Of Fig. 9.

e line lil-12 1 S designates a ,Figure 19. is *la ndetailverticalfsection on trolling` hand lever in either l, o'fits two po!-sitions. 4` Y In the drawings above brieiiy described,

matter described and claimed, the descrip# n tion being'supplemented ,bythe accompany! ing drawings.

*i At suitable l 1 'the s'ections'of the head.together,preferably 7 is aplan yieyv of bne section ofVv i the coupler head of the unit S' of thecouthe structure Vandy protect 'the of Figjll, illustrating the pre-i'crred means forl holding;- the'coupler' con-l V'shank-Carrying 'couplerunit,

civili-rami) To GEORGE n." sri-ier, or

' unit` G werev invented by nie,.thegeneralor vrganization of partsbeing .similar to the constructfio'n showninthe` Stacy patent,\above'referred to. e

- he unit S' comprises a inetalhea-dgyvhich is formed of upper and'lower sectionsl :and 2', said sections being jointly recessed to providea longitudinal passageg having a spherical portion 1i betweenYitsends.,y The `vl'ieadsectionsl and-2 are also' recessed to provide a`pair ot pockets 5 Which yopeninto "opposite sides of thepassageBVininwardly spaced'relation Withits spherical-portion 4. ln the preferredconstruction,=the inner faces of the 'head sectionsly and 2 are,provided with 'stil-l Vfurther recessesf which Yjointly receiveI theouter endvof aI dra-W .bar 7, and

openings 8` are 'formed in saidfsections to receive Abolts 9 Whichsecure the draw bar `inplace as Well as assisting'finclaniping thesections of the head together. @ther bolts 10 have* been'shoivn--passingwthrough the `outerportions ofthe head sections .1v and 2 tofurther secure them together, andto take strain from allfof thef boltsorv otheriiasten ers'Wvhich might be used, the rvhead sections 'arepreferably ormedwithtransverse, in* ter-engaging ribs .11,as s'lioivnclearly in Figs. 1,12; 7` andfS. 1 I

'number ofthe-,bolts 'which hold pass also'A through portions 12 of theYfloor and 'bumper boards of. the car `which carries the unit S, thebumper fleeing-.designated in a general Way at B; The outer'. end of thehead is flush With the outertransverse .edge or the bumper B, and togeneral-ly reinforce edges of the bumper, as well as 'providingeffective an clioring means for thehead, l provide a substantiallyU-shaped', horizontallyv dis pos'e'd, metal plate 13 which extends alongthe edges of the bumper and` theouter end foi? the head'1-`2, theintermediate Aportion of this plate being secured 'by suitable fasteners14 to' saidfouter end of the head and being formed With'v an opening.y15y which registers with the passage 3. The end portions of the plate 13are secured Ato the side Cil elges of the bumper and adjacent portionsof the car body, for instance, by lag screws 16, and certain of thesescrews may well pass through a brace or hanger 17, the latter beingpreferably in the form of stirrup to extend under the bumper B.

A shank 18 is provided to connect the two coupler units S and C, aportion of said shank being received in the. passage 3 and beingprovided with an integral ball 19 which is received for rotary movementin any direction, in the spherical socket portion i of said passage 8.The inner extremity 2O of the shank 18 is preferably somewhat tapered asshown in Figs. 1 and 2, and springs 21 (preferably conical) disposed inthe pockets 5, are provided to co-operate with said end 20 in normallycentering the shank 18 when the two coupler units are disconnected fromeach other. Preferably semi-circular shoes 22 are interposed between theinner ends of the springs 21 and the end 2O of the shank 18. t will beobserved that both the inner and outer ends of the passage 3 are. daredand that the shank 18 is thus free to have pivotal movement in alldirections, about the ball 19. Moreover, this shank may freely rotate,thereby well adapting the improved coupler to use upon cars which arebodily inverted to discharge their loads. lVhenever the two couplerunits are disconnected from each other, the shank 18 is centered by thesprings 21, so that its tapered head 28 is in readiness to properlyengage the clutch unit C, when two cars are brought together. Thisclutch unit will now be described.

24E designates a base plate inset as at 25, in a bumper B of a car C orotherwise r lated with said bumper. rlhis base plate is provided with aconvex outer edge and is provided at its inner edge with an upstandingflange 26 for disposition transversely of the car. The side edges ofthis plate are also formed with upstanding 27 which lead from the end ofthe flange 26 to the above-named convex outer edaof the base plate. Theintermediate portion of a substantially U-shaped horizontally disposedplate 28 abuts this convex outer edge of the base plate 24 and isprovided with a relatively large opening 29 to receive th shank 18. Theend portions et' the 28 extends rearwardly at the outer sides of theflanges 27 and are secured to the latter by screws or the like 81, theseends 30 beingl also secured to the bumper B by screws or otherappropriate fasteners The plate 28, in addition to co-operating with thbase plate 24 and associated parts. in forming a housing for the clutchunit C stende around the edges of the bumper B to effectively protectthem, establ a rigid structure and a rigid connection between the unit Cand the car. The screws 81 preferably secure the ends of a hanger orhangers 17 to the plate 28, said hanger or hangers being similar to thestirrup members 17 above described.

Two metal blocks 33 are disposed in the angles between the iianges 27and the curved intermediate portion of the plate 28, and the latter maybe secured to said blocks by screws or the like These blocks aredisposed in laterally spaced relation to provide a longitudinal passageregistering with the opening 29 to receive the shank 18, and each ofVsaid blocks is formed with a guideway 36 opening into said passage 35.Moreover, each block 33 is provided with an opening 37 whichleads fromthe `guideway 36 to the inner edge of said block, for a purpose to bedescribed. A top plate 38 rests upon the blocks 83 and the flanges 26and 27, and engages the plate 28 also, bolts or other fasteners 89 beingpassed through said top plate and blocks, and through the base plate2li. These bolts also preferably pass through the sub-jacent portion ofthe bumper B to assist in securing the entire coupler unit C to the carC. In order to take strain from the bolts or the like 39 and to providea more rigid structure than could otherwise be obtained, the plates 211and 38, and the blocks 38, are provided with interengaging ribs et).

Two jaws 41 are slidably mounted in the guideways 36 and are normallyprojected into the passage 85, by coiled compression springs l2, theinner ends of said jaws being preferably shaped in the manne-r disclosedmore particularly in Figs. 1, 2, 5 and 6, so that they may readily beengaged by and separated by the conical head 23 of the shank 18 when twocars are brought together. The formation in question is designated at 43and consists in curving and slightly channeling the inner ends of thejaws 41. In addition to this formation, the inner sides of these jaws,adjacent their inner ends, are preferably formed with angular recessesta. either of which may receive a portion of the head 23, when the shank18 must necessarily swing laterallyvto some extent, while the cars arerounding a curve.

Between the block 38 and the flange 26, the base plate 24 is formed witha groove i5 which is parallel with said flange 26. This groove receivesa releasing` slide for the jaws 41, said slide preferably comprising twoblocks 16 and 17, adjustably connected with each other, for instance bya rod 48 whose ends are threaded as at 49, into said blocks. An arm 50is rigidly secured to the block 16 and extends therefrom through theopening 37 of one of the blocks 38, into an opening 51, in one of thejaws 41, the arm being secured to the jaw by a bolt or the like 52. Alever 53 passes through the opening 37 of the other block 83, isfulcrumed 'totheiaaer as at 57.'

' cated at'. .tends into anopening 56 in the adjacent jaw "falliti,

at oneof its ends with the block 47, 'as indi- The other end of thelever eX- 41l and: is pivotally and slidably connected`.'Bysuitablemeans 58, a chain 59 is con'-l ne'cted 'with the blocl;A 46,said chain erz-i4 tending yto the exteriorcf vthe clutch unit housingand' serving'to operate the slide 46-47-48. When this chain is pulled,the arm 50 and the lever 53 function to release the jaws 41, permittingthe head 23 of the shank 18 to withdraw from the clutch unit C, but assoon as the chain is released, the springs 42 act to again project thecurved inner ends of said jaws into the passage 35 in readiness to againengage the head 23, when two cars are to be coupled together. To limitthe inward projection of the jaws 41, the lever 58 and the arm 5() maywell strike ends of the openings 37.

In the preferred form of construction, chain 59 passes around a pulley60 at the exterior of the housing and is connected with a hand lever 61fulcrumed to one end of the car C. Normally, that is, when two cars arecoupled together, this lever rests upon a horizontal support 62 which issuitably secured to the car as shownfmost clearly in Fig. 12. Thissupport is provided with an upstanding lug 63, and when the lever israised to withdraw the jaws 41 from engagement with the head 23, saidlever may rest upon this lug as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 12 thusholding the jaws retracted for any desired length of time.

It will be seen from the foregoing that not only has the constructionshown by Patent 1,483,691, been materially improved, but that I haveprovided an effective shankcarrying unit for co-action with the clutchunit. Marked advantages exist for the details herein disclosed and theyare therefore preferably followed, but within the scope of the inventionas claimed, modiiications may of course be made.

At 64, a draw bar has been shown secured between the flange 26 and thevtop plate 38 by one of the bolts 39, said flange being recessed toreceive said bar.

I claim:

1. A car coupler unit comprising a body adapted to be secured to a carbumper, said body having an opening to receive a car connecting shank,and a substantially shaped metal plate secured at its intermediateportion to said body and having an opening alined with the aforesaidopening, said plate being adapted to be secured to the edges of thebumper and its ends being adapted to be secured to the car body.

2. A car vcoupler unit comprising a base plate having its inner edgeprovided with an fla-nge for disposition transupstandin g said Iplatebeing provided versely of the car,

4'at its side edges with similar flanges extending from the first namediiange to the outer the plate for dispositionv longitu dinally of thecar, a verticalplateisecured against the outer edge ofsaid-base plateand risingfrom thelatter, a pair of: blocks se- -cured `inl'fthe'anglesibetween said 4vertical `4plate',V andfsaid :longitudinal flangesand *spaced apartvtowprovidea longitudinal passage, said vertical platehaving an opening aliued with said passage, said blocks being formedwith guideways transverse to and opening into said passage and beingalso formed with openings from said guideways to the inner edges of theblocks, a pair of spring-projected shank-engaging jaws slidable in saidguideways, a slide between the first named flange and the blocks mountedfor movement in parallel relation with the former, a rigid arm extendingfrom said slide through the aforesaid opening of one block and securedto one of said jaws, a lever extending through the opening of the otherblock` and pivoted to the other jaw and to said slide, and a top platesecured upon said blocks with its edges disposed in contact with theaforesaid vertical plate and flanges.

3. A cai' coupler unit comprising a base plate, a top plate above thesame, a pair of blocks secured between said plates and spaced apart toprovide a longitudinal passage, said blocks having guideways openinginto opposite sides of said passage and also having openings from saidguideways to the inner edges of the blocks, spring-projected jawsslidable in said guideways and having openings for registration with theblock openings, a transverse slide mounted between the top and baseplates adjacent the inner edges of the two blocks, an arm passingthrough the opening of one of the aforesaid bloclrs and secured at oneend in the opening of the adjacent jaw, the other end of said arm beingsecured to said slide, and a lever fulcrumed between its ends in theopening of the other block, one end of said lever being connected tosaid slide, the other end of said lever being connected to the adjacentjaw in the opening of the latter.

4. A car coupler unit comprising a housing having a base plate, a pairof jaws over said base plate, and a slide in the housing connected atspaced points with said jaws, the upper side of said base plate having agroove in which said slide is slidably guided.

5. A car coupler unit comprising a base plate, a pair of jaws thereover,and a slide connected at spaced points with said jaws, said slidecomprising two sections connected respectively with said jaws, and anadjustrl able connection between said sections.

6. A car coupler unit comprising a base plate, a pair of jaws thereover,and a slide Connected at spaced points with said jaws, said slideComprising two sections connected respectively with said jaws, and a rodconneoting said sections and adjustably threaded into the saine.

i9 coupling shank of another Coupler unit, and

a horizontal U-shaped plate embracing and secured to said housing, theintermediate portion of Said plate having an opening alined with saidpassage, said plate being adapted to engage the edges of the bumper toprotect the saine, the ends of said plate being adapted to be secured tothe oar body.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto afixed my signature.V

ROBERT L. BALLOU.

